The setting of the film is introduced: an LA hospital in the 1920s.
Alexandria, the little girl who broke her arm picking oranges, enters the story.
Alexandria meets Roy, a bedridden former stuntman who is also a patient in the hospital. The unexpected encounter is the result of Alexandria's note having fallen on Roy's lap through the open window. The note was originally intended for one of the nurses of the hospital.
Roy begins telling Alexandria a fictional story about Alexander the Great, based on her name.
Alexandria revisits Roy subsequent to their first encounter, having been captivated by his storytelling.
Roy begins telling Alexandria the "epic" story. He introduces five different men who are all seeking justice against the same evil governor, named Odious. The adventure begins.
The heroes of the "epic" story (from left to right): Charles Darwin, the Indian, the Masked Bandit, the Italian, and the Ex-Slave Otta Benga.
The Fall (2006) is a fantasy/adventure film directed by Tarsem Singh. It tells the story of Roy, a bedridden stuntman in early 20th-century Hollywood, and Alexandria, a curious and inquisitive little girl he befriends during his hospital stay. Roy has a broken heart and a death wish. Subsequent to a failed stunt he performed during a film, he not only lost the ability to walk, essentially being paralyzed from the waist down, but he also lost the woman whom he deeply loved to the actor he performed the stunt for. Being thus confined to his hospital bed, Roy has a plan: he begins weaving for Alexandria the most "epic" adventure story ever told. It features seven heroes--the Masked/Black Bandit, the Italian, the Indian, the Mystic, the ex-slave Otta Benga, Charles Darwin and his monkey named Wallace--on a quest of revenge against the evil Governor Odious, each for their own reasons. With this story, Roy's goal is to get Alexandria excited about bandits and about stealing. For each installment of the story he tells her, he wants her to steal "a little something" for him in return, essentially building up to his ultimate goal: getting his hands on a bottle of morphine pills so that he can overdose. The narrative Roy tells Alexandria is seen entirely through her eyes in the film, each character being imagined as someone the little girl knows in real life. In the last third of the movie, having already overdosed on the full bottle of pills (that thankfully turn out to be placebos), Roy struggles to keep up with the story and Alexandria begs him to continue. His lines of dialogue become more theatrical and he resorts to cliches in order to progress the story's climax. The little girl's imagination takes the wheel, the audience seeing Roy and Nurse Evelyn kiss in the story, a scene which expresses the child's desire for harmony and love. The film ultimately concludes with Roy accepting his second chance at life. Throughout the whole movie, Alexandria is seen giving Roy a new life and meaning, using her childlike innocence and love to offer him a new story and a new hope upon which he can live. Together, they create an "epic" story that ends happily despite its turbulent progression.
The Fall was shot over the course of four years, in twenty-four countries. The director of the film calls it "a magic mystery tour" of the world. One could argue that it can also be considered a magic mystery tour of the mind and the intricacies of storytelling because it demonstrates the unbreakable connection a story can build between two people.
The film's cinematography is like no other. It features impeccable transitions and extraordinary use of color, producing jaw-dropping and engaging visuals that capture the viewer's attention and make one feel physically present in the story.
Through the usage of visual symbolism and impeccable cinematography, the Fall blends reality with fantasy. It tells a story about storytelling, bridging the gap between a hopeless stuntman and a hopeful little girl.
Words: fantasy, adventure, storytelling, colorful, love
Different approach--> sequence will be more abstract, geometric, and colorful in nature since the film plays a lot on those elements + original sequence idea felt too similar to the actual film's opening credits
Sequence starts with an abstract composition of an orange in a tree, signifying the beginning of the film in which Alexandria injures/breaks her hand due to falling off a ladder during orange picking.
Zooming closer to the orange. The name of the girl playing Alexandria, positioned next to it. Radial wipe effect applied to the two circles around the orange to create a sense of movement.
Orange falls off and the camera zooms into the diagonal branch to create transition into the next scene.
Scene of hospital room. Abstract wheelchair signifying Roy's injury/physical impediment. Composition meant to be understood from a peeking-around-the-corner perspective ("reenactment" of how Alexandria met Roy).
Door closing, signifying the end of the film's "real-life" introduction and the beginning of Roy's fantastical story which he shares with Alexandria.
Keyhole morphing into a machete sword, one of the bandit's main weapons in Roy's story.
Sword transitioning into the nose of the mask the bandit in Roy's story wears.
Zooming into one of the eye holes of the mask to create transition into the next scene.
Triangular forms resembling a mountainuous landscape signify the vast amount of places the characters in Roy's narrative travel to. Wavy line in the foreground signifies water (playing into that idea of travel).
Taj Mahal silhouette on the left (one of the movie's staple locations that I felt like captured the essence of the film in its architectural form and extravagance).
Camera moving downward, imitating the movement of a fall. Creates transition into last part of sequence.
Director/producer announced on an all black background.
Film's title revealed. The all black background opens up in a way similar to the butterfly mask which the bandit's love interest wore when she stepped out of the caravan to meet him for the first time.
Film title positioned on this platform-like form, resembling the tall white curtain stained with blood featured in the film. The "curtain" moves downwards as the sequence concludes, playing further into the idea of a fall.